New HISD preschools to give kids head start

Building Blocks For Learning

Published 5:30 am, Sunday, July 25, 2004

Michelle Cruz had been taking her 4-year-old twins to a day care center two days a week. It was all she and her husband could afford.

But now, with next month's planned opening of the Houston school district's Ninfa Rodriguez Laurenzo Early Childhood Center, Cruz can't wait to get Gabriel and Gabriella into public preschool classes every weekday. "They're young," she said, "and they can learn more at the center than staying home with me."

Like Cruz's children, more than 32,000 preschoolers in the Houston area are getting ready to start classes next month. At the same time, an additional 21,000 area children who qualify for publicly funded preschool won't be going. And education advocates, frustrated that so many children are missing out on an opportunity to improve their readiness for school, are calling for better ways to reach young children who need that early boost.

This fall, the Houston Independent School District is opening two new preschools, one on the east side and one in the south part of town. But officials acknowledge that the facilities, costing a total of $15 million, won't come close to meeting the demand, even with plans to add more in the future.

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In HISD alone, more than 1,900 4-year-olds are on a waiting list, and thousands more qualify. But a shortage of facilities and money have limited the area's preschool classes, which researchers say are vital to eliminating the achievement gap between the affluent and the poor.

A 38-year preschool study in Chicago found that children in quality preschool programs are less likely to be retained or placed in special education classes and are more likely to graduate than students who were not enrolled. In fact, Reynolds said, good preschool programs are more effective in improving achievement than later interventions, such as tutoring or small class sizes.

"We know that these large-scale public programs that are funded by government can have long-term enduring effects, and Chicago's experience indicates that every dollar you invest in a high-quality preschool program means the return to society is up to $10 for every dollar invested," he said.

In Texas, 3- and 4-year-olds are eligible for free preschool if they are homeless, can't speak English or come from a family whose annual income qualifies them for the federally subsidized lunch program, which is $34,873 for a family of four.

Also, Head Start programs provide early education as well as social services for children whose families fall below the poverty level, which is $18,850 per year for a family of four.

But federally funded Head Start, which serves about 6,700 Houston-area children, is reaching just 26 percent of those eligible, said Todd Litton, executive director of Houston's Preschool for All. And of those eligible for the state-funded program based on income alone, 40 percent aren't served.

Many of the children who qualify are in private child care centers, where educational quality varies widely. Only about 7.4 percent of the area's child care facilities have preschool programs accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. And most of those are in Houston's more affluent westside neighborhoods.

The cost of preschool isn't cheap, at $3,000 to $15,000 per child per year in private or public preschool.

Three years ago, Spring Branch Independent School District offered free preschool to all 4-year-olds. But tight finances forced the district to start charging parents $400 a month if they earn more than the state guidelines.

Money, though, isn't always the issue.

Many parents whose children qualify for free preschool choose other options even if there is an available program in their neighborhood. For working parents, many of the preschool programs simply aren't convenient.

Some are half-day only, and others, including HISD's two new centers, require parents to transport their children. But education advocates such as Carol Shattuck of the nonprofit Collaborative for Children say they hope families' preschool options will be changing for the better.

A new law, approved by the 2003 Legislature, is calling for school districts, Head Start contractors and child care centers to better coordinate early education programs.

Yet there are obstacles. For example, not all children at a child care center may qualify for publicly funded preschool instruction. And school districts may be reluctant to go beyond their boundaries, just as child care centers may fear encroachment from the state or school district. Many school districts already work with Head Start centers.

About 180 children are expected at the Ninfa Rodriguez Laurenzo Early Childhood Center in Houston's East End, where many Hispanics live. The second facility is the Martin Luther King Jr. Early Childhood Center in south Houston.

Under HISD's bond program, the district plans to build two more preschools opening next year. Officials also hope to convert two vacant schools, Easter and Fairchild, into preschool centers.

The district is working with Harris County on a joint preschool and senior citizen center at Lee Elementary.